Monday, June 12, 2006

[Kings] Musselman's Assistants

New Sacramento coach Eric Musselman, who was rumored to be a candidate for the Bucks head coaching job last summer, hasn’t wasted time putting together a staff. Scott Brooks, who coached in Denver, along with Jason Hamm, who was a video coordinator for the Memphis Grizzlies, are expected to join Musselman’s staff. T.R. Dunn is also likely to be retained, leaving Musselman with one more coach to hire.

Musselman said he had "10 to 15 serious conversations" with coaching candidates.

"There's so many quality people out there," Musselman said. "You just have to decipher which ones are best, not only for me, but maybe more importantly which guys will fit best with our guys."

Elston Turner had the first interview, coming in the informal setting of an outbound commercial plane from Sacramento. Turner, the lead assistant under Rick Adelman who was dismissed with the rest of the coaching staff, was one of three former Kings assistants whose trip to Orlando to find work was paid for by their former employer. The others were Dunn and Bubba Burrage. Turner said he hopes his history with Musselman and proven effectiveness with the current Kings' roster pays off.

When Turner was hired as a Portland assistant in 1996, he joined a staff that included the late Bill Musselman, Eric's father and a former NBA head coach who was, at the time, an assistant.

"When I got the job in Portland … the first congratulations card came from (Eric Musselman)," Turner said.

Turner -- who also coached against Eric Musselman in the CBA -- said his conversation ended with the situation left "open."

"He's trying to pull together the right mix of people," Turner said. "We'll see what happens."